Page from a Sketchbook with Composition Sketches and Color Specifications, undated

On this page, torn out of a sketchbook, Egon Schiele (1890–1918) drew a series of composition sketches in pencil and added various explanatory designations, thus granting us insight into his drafting process. He commented on the entangled pair of figures in the lower right corner writing “Goldilocks”, referring to the head of the larger, probably male figure. The upper left draft was marked with simple color specifications: “green, yellow-gray, black.” Schiele’s notes on the shades of pigments for the sketch on the right, meanwhile, are much more specific: “pozzuoli, light ocher, bright citron, vermilion.” It is unclear whether the sketches can be connected to any of Schiele’s fully executed works. Schiele’s notes contain many similar designations on sketches, for instance on the Page from a Sketchbook with Composition Sketch and Color Specifications.

SH, 2024